A Frank Friendship

Gandhi’s close relationship with people and events in Bengal extended over 50 years. He first entered Calcutta in 1896 when visiting India from South Africa. His last visit in 1947 coincided almost to the day with India’s independence from British rule. Bengal has always been one of India’s most vibrant regions, politically, commercially and artistically, never moreso than during the struggle for independence. Over this half century, Gandhi forged close links with the region, connecting himself with many of Bengal’s cultural and political leaders - Rabindranath Tagore, Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray, Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das, and the Bose brothers.Gandhi and Bengal draws on a wide range of contemporary documents – from newspaper reports, letters, journals, and Gandhi’s own writings. The book throws new light on Gandhi’s own evolution as a politician and a strategist, revealing his continual struggle against colonialism as well as his very personal dilemmas, torn between the practical and the spiritual.